Police Funding

Carla Lockhart Excerpts

Tuesday 5th November 2024 Westminster Hall

[Carla Lockhart (Upper Bann) (DUP)]

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this debate, and I commend the hon. Member for North Down (Alex Easton) for securing his first Westminster Hall debate and for his efforts. I agree with much of what he said. Members will forgive me for continuing to champion the needs of Northern Ireland and highlighting the uplift needed.

The House is well aware that Northern Ireland is running a deficit of an estimated £37 million. The numbers are well below what is safe for policing, and crime is on the increase. It would be remiss of me, as a female MP from Northern Ireland, not to raise the increased attacks on females in Northern Ireland: 42 have been killed in the last eight years, making Northern Ireland the most lethal place in Europe for women.

Drugs, criminality, terrorism and changing crime patterns—especially the rise of cyber-crime—place additional demands on police resources. The recent PSNI-led investigation into Alexander McCartney’s online crimes, which tragically involved hundreds of victims globally, illustrates the massive resources that complex cyber cases require. Traditional crimes are no longer a measure.

Years of tight budgets have left officers facing even greater workloads, but pay has effectively fallen by 25% over the past decade. Low pay and increasing job pressure are driving officers to leave soon after completing training—a costly waste of resources. We have the highest number of officers leaving after their two-year probation. Retention is a major concern in Northern Ireland, but the exodus is not all about money; officers feel demoralised by slow, punitive disciplinary systems and worry about being targeted unfairly. The situation is driving up sickness rates and early retirements due to mental health issues, further straining resources. The PSNI is now grappling with record levels of sick leave and rising medical retirements, with nearly 800 officers off sick on a given day.

There is also the issue of mission creep. As other public services have faced cuts, the police are increasingly called on to fill the gaps, especially with mental health and social care. Officers in Northern Ireland, and across the UK, spend a significant portion of their time in A&E, and the demand from children’s homes is high with calls about children who miss curfew—a task that stretches resources and takes time away from core duties.

What am I getting at? Policing budgets must reflect the wide array of duties that are now attached to policing in Northern Ireland. While there are those in this place—although they are not present today—whose party bemoans the Chief Constable’s ask of the Prime Minister for urgent moneys, I want to say that my hon. Friends and I support him 100%. He does so knowing the crisis point we are at, and because he presides over the crisis. Therefore, I support his asks and trust that the Minister is advocating for such with the Treasury.

There are specific challenges that the Police Service of Northern Ireland faces that differ from those in England and Wales. Unlike police forces in other parts of the UK, the PSNI does not receive funding through a local precept, although we acknowledge that it gets a top-up to help address terrorism threats. Also, unlike its counterparts in England, the PSNI lacks easy access to mutual support from neighbouring forces. When English forces need extra help, they can call on neighbouring teams, which is a very cost-effective and efficient solution. For the PSNI, mutual aid requires extensive planning, which limits flexibility in emergencies, so headcount must reflect that.

Another urgent issue for the PSNI is the compensation bill related to the recent data breach and fines from the Information Commissioner’s Office, which again will deeply impact already stretched budgets. It was bitterly disappointing, but not surprising, that policing in Northern Ireland did not feature in last week’s Budget. UK policing—we accept that this is right across the UK—faces a funding shortfall so deep that it is not just about money and funding now; it is about a thoughtful, strategic funding package. We need to rethink how to resource the police so that they can meet the needs, retain their officers and focus on core responsibilities.